A sure sign of the return of travel is the new flight routes airlines have added for 2022. After they cut many routes when things ground to a halt in the spring of 2020, airlines are not only restoring some of those but adding new ones that didn’t exist prior to the pandemic. These new routes will make it easy to access some exciting off-the-beaten-path places in style and comfort.
All-business-class airline La Compagnie, which operates twice-weekly flights from Newark to Paris’ Orly airport and seasonal flights to Nice is adding Milan and Tel Aviv to its schedule. Just south of the City of Lights, Orly can get travelers into the heart of Paris in about half the time it takes to reach from Charles de Gaulle. Though Italy is among Americans’ favorite destinations and Milan is an exciting, cosmopolitan city, it’s often overlooked by U.S. travelers. After a few days getting a close-up view of “The Last Supper,” dining along the Navigli canals and the best shopping of your life, Milan’s the perfect gateway to Italy’s lake country.
United is adding its own new Milan route, a nonstop from Chicago O’Hare. UA is also adding a flight from Washington, D.C. to Amman, making the gorgeous (and safe) country of Jordan accessible from the East Coast. Islands are getting a lot of love from United, with new flights to the Azores, Canary Islands and Mallorca from Newark, along with one to Bergen on Norway’s fjord-studded west coast. For New Yorkers who prefer JFK, Azores Airlines is adding a nonstop to Ponta Delgada. JetBlue is launching a JFK-Puerto Vallarta flight starting Feb. 19.
For New Englanders seeking a taste of the Old World, Delta is launching Boston-Athens and Boston-Tel Aviv routes over Memorial Day weekend. Premium select seats will be available on every Delta flight to Europe this summer for the first time. Also out of Boston, Delta will resume nonstops to Edinburgh (five times weekly) and Rome (daily) in May. Not forgetting about New York, Delta is adding routes from JFK to Zurich, Edinburgh, Brussels, Copenhagen and Prague.
American is concentrating on the Caribbean, with thrice-weekly service from Miami to Anguilla already started, the first flights directly from the U.S. mainland to the British Overseas Territory. AA is also adding daily service from Miami to Dominica after the successful launch of twice-weekly nonstops, making it easier to reach one of the gems of the Lesser Antilles.